Watching
by adi-syrin
Summary: An invisible H.B. watches over Millie after events in "A Bolt From The Blue".


**Disclaimer: **The characters belong to Jill Murphy's _The Worst Witch _and to Gala Film (I think... the T.V. company who does own the series, then) I'm just borrowing them.**  
Summary: **An invisible H.B. watches over Millie after events in A Bolt From the Blue.  
  


  
Watching  
  


Mildred Hubble had never been her favorite student. True, with the exception of Ethel Hallow, it could be argued that Miss Hardbroom did not have any favorites. But even Ethel was not excused from any wrong doing. And in the same way that Ethel was not always the perfect student in Miss Hardbroom's opinion (the Hallowe'en broomstick incident came to mind), Mildred Hubble was not always in the wrong.  
  
She knew, that unlike Ethel Hallow, Mildred rarely caused trouble on purpose; for the most part her mayhem was caused by well-meaning intentions gone awry. In fact, Miss Hardbroom was also quite aware that Mildred was only responsible for about half of the trouble she got into (although Mildred's shortcomings in the potion lab were her own fault).   
  
It had not taken Miss Hardbroom long to figure out it had been Ethel who had puffified the desk Mildred had been standing on. It had quite surprised her that Miss Cackle herself had not figured it out. After all, what harm could Mildred have possibly done to anyone with her hands on her head? And since Ethel had been the only student to successfully puffify anything (no surprise there), it had been a logical deduction.  
  
Miss Hardbroom had watched with horror, as Miss Cackle dragged Mildred out of the classroom by the ear, paying no attention to the girl's cries of pain. Constance had protested, to be sure, but her reasoning had fallen on deaf ears. Mildred Hubble was going to be expelled, and there was nothing Miss Hardbroom could do about it. _Ironic, isn't it?_ she mused. _The one time I think **Mildred** doesn't deserve getting expelled is the one time she **gets **expelled! Perhaps I'm losing my mind. On second thought, maybe Amelia is...._  
  
She had followed Miss Cackle as the woman hauled Mildred up to her room. Constance had paused, wanting to say something to Mildred— something reassuring, maybe an apology for the Headmistress' behavior (it had been a potion from her shelves, after all), but Miss Cackle had beckoned, ruining any chance Constance might have had at having a private word with Mildred. She had left, silent and horrified at the way in which Mildred was being treated. The girl could be a nuisance, yes, but did she really deserve to be denied all visitors? Especially if she was going to be expelled?  
  
It was night when Constance returned. It had taken her longer than she had expected to escape Miss Cackle's newly prying eyes. Only after room checks had Constance deemed it safe to return to Mildred's room. Of course, she had taken certain precautions. Being able to move about invisibly certainly had its advantages. In the corner of the room, by Mildred's somewhat unkempt wardrobe, Constance watched over her pupil.  
  
Mildred was lying down on the bed, curling around the form of her disheveled gray tabby cat. Her eyes were open, staring listlessly into space, her thoughts clearly elsewhere. Her breathing was slightly staggered (the girl had been crying, Constance reasoned) and her hand stroked the fur of the small creature as if she were trying to draw some comfort from it. Illuminated in the blue light spilling in from the window, Mildred looked so innocent. It was hard to believe she was being expelled. Miss Hardbroom even momentarily forgot why she generally disliked Mildred. The girl was as harmless as any other. And Constance would never get to know that girl any further. There was so much that needed to be said— so much that needed to be resolved. But Constance kept quiet, watching silently over the girl like a shadow.  
  
Gradually, Mildred's breathing steadied, becoming more soft and even. The girl nuzzled her tabby cat affectionately, breathing in the smell of its fur. Morosely, she sat up, swinging her legs over the side of the bed, and walking over to the window.  
  
_She'll be all right_, Constance decided, and vanished from the room without a sound, leaving Mildred alone to ponder the strange sight outside her window.


End file.
